Letters Home
by sanctum-c
Summary: An OC helps Aeris get to Bone Village; a different perspective on the events of Final Fantasy VII.
1. Promised Letter

Dear Alphys,

Here's the letter I promised in my note! I hope you'll read this and forgive me for rushing off without another word (and Mom and Dad aren't plotting to literally chain me down the second I get back). Not sure if the post mark will be clear enough, but I'm in Bone Village at the moment! I'll include the address if you feel like writing back – I'd like that. I should be back in at most one week. I miss you. I know I probably seem like the worst person in the world running off like this, but I'm begging your forgiveness. It's kinda hard to explain why I did it. And this is going to sound so bad, but it's because of a girl who came to the village last week.

I haven't eloped! I still love you and I will still come home, but I wanted to help her. Her name is Aeris Gainsborough. She wanted someone to take her North and asked if I could. Obviously I said no, but turns out I could and should have just said yes. I mean, I like to think I've proven I'm perfectly capable of sailing - I made it here! Aeris wanted to get moving and wasn't prepared to wait. I told her she'd need to pay and she said money wasn't a factor.

Weirdly she outright asked which boat was mine and offered to buy it. As if I could sell. I told her it was more than she could afford. Alphys; she had a bag full of materia. Must have been enough to buy the whole town twice over. Greens and reds- Oh I was tempted. I could do so much with all of that. We could do so much with all that money. But I'd lose my boat.

I told her no and she accepted that. So I asked her where she was going. Weirdest answer: The Sleeping Forest. I can tell you straight off, she was like no archaeologist I've ever seen. Not even like one off TV or anything. But then, she didn't say Bone Village; she said the Sleeping Forest. That place people have to be dragged out of. Except she didn't- Getting ahead of myself!

I asked if Aeris had much experience on boats – nope. Short trip on a cargo ferry doesn't count for much. And somehow she figured she could pick up sailing as she went. I figured I had a few choices here. Sell her the boat and let whatever happens happen. Or leave her to be preyed upon by some unscrupulous types. Or I could go with her. I took some of the materia and struck a bargain. Get her North. I know I'm going to be in so much trouble for that, but I hope the gil we earn back will make up for it.

Aeris is weird. She spent so long distracted and she kept looking North. Sometimes I could swear she was listening to something I couldn't hear. And she talked a lot. Wanted to know everything. About you, the village, the boat, my parents. The odd points where I could ask her anything she said a lot but she always steered the conversation back to me. Best I could make out, she'd been travelling with some friends and left them behind to go North. She had lived in Midgar until something made her leave. And she'd walked from Gongaga. I don't want to speculate, but I think she left Midgar right around the time President Shinra was murdered. Don't think she did it though.

We made good time along the coast, venturing out into deeper waters where necessary and skirting around the scattered island chains that offered us the best and safest passage to the North. At Aeris's request, I taught her various aspects of sailing; another hand on the boat's always helpful! Something was making Aeris agitated and impatient to reach her destination. The further North we went, the more Aeris's attention wandered, the more she seemed to listen to something else.

There were other oddities too; I never felt tired while sailing with her, no matter how the weather affected us and seemed to keep us awake for hours. Food lasted longer than expected. And there was the weird night. Never really believed all those stories about the monsters in the Northern waters, but it was hard not to think about them while out there. Didn't sleep much and kept my spear to hand.

But Aeris was another matter; so easily distracted, unfamiliar with life at sea and without any kind of weapon. Did not want to sleep but had to – and did not sleep well. Bad dreams- And I don't know if the next part happened? There was a light that faded when I opened my eyes. And the sea was calm, the night clear, Aeris helming the tiller. No monsters. Still couldn't sleep but nothing ever came near the boat.

The moment we docked at Bone Village, Aeris headed right for the Sleeping Forest. All the workers stared at her as she walked through the excavation, though no one was concerned or panicked. They had seen this moment or one like it many times before. And not sure I've seen people as shocked and worried as they would be not even an hour later.

I asked Aeris if she was really going into the forest. She said she had to and gave me all the materia she had. The bag weighed a tonne! I tried to refuse it but she insisted. And I felt guilty. So I asked about after the forest. That... confused her. Like she'd never considered what she was going to do after. I figured (seemingly incorrectly) that she was going to meditate or the forest had some special significance for her. I wondered about her friends.

And she just relaxed. She asked me to wait a week for her. If she didn't meet me by then, I could come home and that would be it. If she made it back I'd bring her back from the North and she could go her own way again.

And then she went into the forest.

The other workers had been watching; as soon as Aeris walked away from me they put down their tools and started getting out harnesses and ropes. This was the rescue team. They'd done this so many times – I asked one (Sans) how many times and he said they'd lost count! People always reckoned they could make it through. What normally happened was that someone would go in, the rescue team would give them about thirty minutes and head in after. Usually the person would be right next to the first marker – about five minutes inside. Occasionally someone would turn up who sprinted or could just tolerate it a bit longer and they'd make it to the second marker.

There is a third and a fourth marker but it's been twenty years since anyone got that far.

So. First guy gets roped up and heads into the woods. Five minutes past and there's no tug on the rope. Aeris seems hardier. Ten minutes and still no tug. Another five and people are worried. So another guy is roped up and heads in. He tugs on the rope after five minutes. He comes sprinting out of the woods and joins in pulling the rope. And he's worried now. The first man was slumped over beside the first marker and no sign of Aeris. She might have made it to the second.

Once the first guy was out, they reset and sent in another guy. They waited twenty minutes to pull him back – he was someone who routinely could make it fifteen minutes deep – all the way to the third marker. Problem is, it takes about an hour for someone to wake up. So we were still waiting on what the first guy even saw. But based on the second and third people to go in... Aeris made it further than anyone else.

Or at least that was the optimistic assumption. When the other two came to, they were less enthusiastic. Aeris might have veered off the path in which case she could be anywhere. Or she could tolerate the place a little more than anyone else and be only a little past the fourth marker – the furthest any had made it and beyond the capability of anyone in the village.

Everyone was quiet after. A few more attempts saw no one make it anything close to the maximum distances. And no sign of Aeris. They gave up eventually and left the entrance to the woods. Real quiet; first failure in years. I waited a bit longer and then used some of the materia to rent a room and wrote this letter.

By the time you read this, hopefully I'll be on my way home whether Aeris walks out of those woods or not.

If she does come back, I hope she'll tell me why she went in there. Or how she made it past the markers. I know there's some stuff to the North; Gaea's cliffs and Icicle Inn. But if she wanted to go there, there are easier ways than trying to cut through the woods. So maybe there's something in between? Never heard of anything past the forest, but I hope she made it there if there is.

So. That's what I've been doing. Please write back if you can – I'd love to hear how things are doing there. And I miss you so, so much. I know it looks bad, but I promise there's nothing between me and Aeris. I want to come home to you as soon as I can.

Yours forever,

Undyne.


	2. Four Days Later

Dear Alphys,

Not sure if it's even been long enough for my first letter to reach you. Hopefully you get this one after the first - otherwise I'm not sure this is going to make sense! But just in case – I'm still sorry for running off, I still love you and I have a pile of Materia!

Anyway. Four days after Aeris walked into those woods another group of strangers arrived at Bone Village looking for her. I don't know if they were her friends. They might be, but one of them was a SOLDIER (he had the glowing eyes and a huge sword) so I don't know. But then there was a Wutai girl there too. And a red wolf creature. And a mechanical Moogle. And a guy with a gun for an arm!

(So the rest were kind of weird too, but not as weird. Guy in a red cape? Not so weird. Guy with goggles? Perfectly normal. A slightly older girl than the one from Wutai in a short skirt? Nothing weird about her at all; she seemed the most eager to find Aeris).

The rescue team did not want to let them into the forest, but they insisted. The SOLDIER and the older girl demanded they be allowed in and eventually the team relented. Got ready just like before. You can guess what happened next: they went in and couldn't find any trace of the group! But the rescue team keeled over just like always.

Something's different about the woods. If Aeris doesn't come back in the next three days, I am half tempted to try this myself. Only half! Not sure I want to take the risk. I mean, I can't be certain that Aeris and or the other group could actually make it back out.

Three more days! The waiting is boring and I wish you were here with me. Hope things are still good at home. See you soon - one way or another!

Yours Forever,

Undyne.


	3. Coming Home

Dear Alphys,

If you're reading this I will be there soon! There's a chance I'll be back before you get this – and I really hope this letter isn't going to reach you when you're upset with me or anything. Just a quick note before we set sail. Yes, we. Aeris came back out of the forest.

Just as I was wondering about seeing if I could make through like Aeris and like those others. I don't know what I would have done if I made it – and before she came back I didn't know if anyone could. But Aeris made it – and she looked a complete mess! Her dress was soaked and covered in blood, her hair all over the place. No sign of her ribbon. She smiled when she saw me, but it was like a pained smile? She thought I would have already gone.

I told her I would wait and I asked what happened.

She said: "A defeat. A bad one." And then, I know this is weird, but I swear this is what she told me. "For a time I was with the Planet and it sent me back." She said something about learning more than she dreamed and had forgotten something her Mother taught her?

To be honest I figured she had a cold or a fever. She was shivering. So I sorted her some new clothes (she had no money or anything else), bought her a meal. She was eager to get moving. I asked her where she would go next though she doesn't have any plans. Just waiting but also needing to get moving. I asked about the SOLDIER and those others I saw. Those were apparently her friends, but they left her behind? She was really cagey about how that happened. Or where the blood was from. Or why she was so wet.

But I have to admit, I feel happier now; I kept my end of the bargain, so I can come home and not worry.

Love you and see you soon!

Undyne


	4. Not Home

_A/N: I made a few amendments to Chapter 2! Thanks anon; can't believe I missed Barret out. He's not been added back in, and I made a slight change to clarify that Tifa is older in contrast with Yuffie, not Aeris. Also thanks to Lady Yomi for her reviews!_

* * *

Dear Alphys,

You will not at all be surprised to learn something has gone wrong since I am not back home – and this might be something to do with the red star – or the Meteor as some are calling it. Even given the worst possible weather, I should have been back with you a week ago. I am in Mideel, but about to head out again. And I am kind of loathe to admit it, but I'm here because of Aeris. I will stress again that I am not running off with her or anything. I'm helping her out. Because she needs help doing... Well, I wish I knew. I wish she would tell me something more concrete.

We were heading for home. Aeris had no plans of where to go so I was going to drop her off somewhere and let her do whatever she needed to while I dealt with the fallout. And I know this is just going to be worse now.

Aeris is improving as a sailor – and she might have been able to go it alone, but we only had my boat so I couldn't leave her to it. And now she had no money thanks to her materia generosity.

Something happened when we were out to sea; the world just felt... wrong. From some comments from other people here, this seems to have happened everywhere. So maybe you felt it too? If so, I think it bears mentioning that just after I felt that, Aeris stared right at the red star. I could barely see it, but she grimaced. Somehow she knew what it was before anyone else.

Then there was the shadow. It was moving too fast, but it was something big. Huge and silent and left a huge draft in its wake and came near to tipping us both out the boat! I couldn't make out what it was when it sped away from us, but Aeris wasn't interested. She was still looking dead North. "I need a boat," she said.

"You're sitting in one?" Urgh. That sounds like I was in control. I was panicking at that point. And she was absurdly calm even after the shadow.

"I can't pay you," she said.

"You already paid me one hundred times over!" I said. And... why did I say that? I'm meant to be coming home and seeing you but- She needed a friend right then. Hers were all somewhere else.

I know I said Aeris seemed absurdly calm after the shadow, but the situation was definitely getting to her. She stopped sleeping. And I don't mean this in a she kept herself awake and could never drift off. I mean she was wide awake the entire time and did not once settle down. It helped a lot, but I have no idea how she was able to keep that up all the way down to Mideel. Which is of course the other problem. Incredibly, near impossibly, we made it all the way down here in my boat.

My boat! Madness to even try, but we made it.

Aeris seemed constantly agitated even after we had the best wind I have ever seen. Perfect direction, never faltering, never dipping. We sped across the ocean like that time at the lake. She stopped looking North too. Now she looked... down? Kept staring over the side of the boat, or sometimes right down at the hull.

That has to be the oddest voyage I ever had. Like; even after I offered to help Aeris I should have found somewhere to dock and take on supplies. Mailed you earlier. But I didn't. We just set off. And so we should have had issues. But somehow I never got thirsty all that time. Not even when we shot across the equator and the air got hotter and hotter. We were never hungry either.

Just as we were approaching Mideel port, Aeris stared over the side of the boat and insisted we stop. That was a whole other mess trying to furl the sails. Below us I could see Mako vents. And she asked if I could swim. Turns out she couldn't. And then she said:

"There's someone down there. Please help them."

A stupid request. And somehow I'm writing to you after having gone swimming near some of the biggest Mako vents in the world! I dropped the sea anchor and Aeris pointed to this one dark spot in the glow. She was right; there was something down there... Hard to gauge how far down. I'm good at diving, but...

Aeris was really distressed, on the verge of going herself. I stopped her. And dove down.

You should come here Alphys. I'd love to visit Mideel with you once this is over. The water is so clear, so many wonderful reefs and corals. And fish! But I didn't have time to really look at those. I figured I could at least try and make the dive. And it took me an embarrassingly long time to realise I was getting deeper than I expected and my breath was holding. Right to the point that I was worrying about coming back up too fast.

But then I got down far enough to see the dark spot – it was a person. And this just gets crazy. It was the SOLDIER I saw walk into the Sleeping Forest! His name, Aeris told me after, was Cloud Strife and he was drifting near the Mako flow, the leg of his uniform snagged. Couldn't imagine he was still alive, but I could hardly leave him. And how had he managed to get here?

Still no need to breath even after I untangled him and ascended. Was there anything to be done for him?

This has been a weird, weird story up to this point, but I will insist the following happened since it sounds impossible: as soon as we broke surface, Cloud hacked up all the water out of his lungs. Didn't wake up, didn't come around. But he was breathing. Between us, me and Aeris got him onto the boat. Aeris put her head to his chest and smiled. She said he was as okay as could be expected.

Then she said she had no time. And suddenly it was like the trip to Bone Village all over again. She was agitated and fidgety and staring to the East. But before we set out she insisted we take Cloud to shore. She whispered something in his ear. I didn't mean to eavesdrop, but she said something that sounded like "I'm relying on her to bring you back."

I... like to think Aeris cares for him. But we left him on the beach! Up above the tideline, still unconscious but breathing. I said we should get him to a hospital, but Aeris was having none of it, and told me someone would find him and he would be fine. I hung on as long as possible to find someone -anyone - to alert about him even if we couldn't take him in ourselves for some reason, but no one came. And Aeris was still unconcerned. And smiling.

On reflection, maybe being friends with her is not a good thing? She claimed she had no idea how he made it to Mideel, but then I'm not sure I believe her when she told me she just happened to spot him down there either. One of her friends on the opposite side of the Planet to where I knew he had last been. And us all the way down here in a fraction of the time we should have taken.

Aeris is not being honest and- And maybe I'll leave her after this next trip. It took pains to convince her to stop here for some more supplies. She doesn't seem to think food is necessary anymore, but I'm not going to keep on trusting whatever weird effect got us here.

So. Going to the Eastern continent next. And if things don't change, I might just head home. Before Meteor gets any bigger.

Forever yours and so, so sorry.

Undyne.


	5. Prepared to Fight for the Future

_A/N. Thanks to Lady Yomi for all her kind words!_

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Dear Alphys,

You might have guessed that I changed my mind after my last letter. Not that Aeris has been even a little more open with what and how anything works, but what I wound up seeing- Well. News might have gotten to you about it. I know the news is still being broadcast but so much is about Meteor or Avalanche (and to give you a sample of how weird my life seems to be; that awful execution Shinra was televising? Tifa Lockhart and Barret Wallace are two of the people I saw walk into the Sleeping Forest with Cloud! So, Aeris seems to be part of Avalanche. But then she almost seems to be avoiding them? Getting ahead of myself).

After Mideel, Aeris got us to sail North and East; and the wind was utterly perfect again. And for a long, long time I missed out on a great deal of news. So; that execution was an absolute shock. Junon's attack- The first I knew about that was when we sailed past the harbour and saw what was left of the monster (Weapons? Or something?). Mideel suffering the earthquake (but Aeris was not even remotely concerned about Cloud's well-being. "He's fine" was all she'd say when I expressed concern).

...my geography of the Eastern continent isn't great. I know Junon's there. I know Midgar and Kalm are there. And there's maybe some Chocobo breeding place there? In any case, I'm pretty sure I hadn't heard of Fort Condor until Aeris insisted we go ashore and head for it.

I've had to piece this together from things afterward, because Aeris isn't fully aware of the place's history, I'd never heard of it, and I never even got to set foot inside.

So way back a few decades ago, there was some kind of split in the Shinra corporation and one of the old President's cronies decided to head off on his own. And he took the blueprints for a Mako reactor with him. Shinra immediately sued, but not before he had setup his own company and managed to install a reactor at Fort Condor.

All of which seems to have really annoyed Shinra; while they sued the guy out of existence, the people at Fort Condor just ignored their insistence they either transfer control over to Shinra, or shut the reactor down, or even let them inspect it. They've been at a kind of stand-off for years, and no one with any kind of affiliation with Shinra are allowed in.

In the end: there is this Mako reactor which isn't run by Shinra way out in the middle of nowhere near the old mythril mines. For some reason, a Phoenix has made its nest on top of the reactor and spends near all its time sleeping. "The Phoenix is rarely away from the Fort" is apparently a popular saying.

And on top of that, something changed the last few days and Shinra became actively desperate to get control of it. So Shinra sent in their army. Now, you might think that the sight of a whole army would be distracting enough, but the thing that really stands out at Fort Condor is the Phoenix. A great, big massive Phoenix sitting on an egg almost as big in a huge nest. Right on top of the reactor...

I asked Aeris if she had been here before.

"Once." She said. "We only stopped by briefly while..." And this being Aeris, she trailed off and refused to be drawn on what that last visit was like. "Worse this time."

"Who are those guys?" In amongst all the blue-suited infantry and the odd member of SOLDIER (all wearing similar uniforms to Cloud), were some in red jumpsuits.

"Not sure," Aeris said. Then she got to her feet and walked right towards the tower.

I told her she couldn't go in there, but she shook me off and said she would be fine. And asked me to stay put. I almost wish I had gone but- I know she wasn't caught because she's in the room next door showering before we push onto Midgar and- I... maybe should have opened with that? But I want to tell you about the rest of Fort Condor first.

Aeris might have gotten inside the fort, but I couldn't see from where I was. But a Shinra airship turned up and docked with the tower. That set off the army moving, but I think the airship somehow wasn't on their side? It alone escaped what happened.

I'm not sure what anyone was after, but the army went for the fortress doors and started scaling the walls. Looked pretty one-sided, but then: everything came to an end when the Phoenix let out this cry. It was like nothing I've heard. Painful, and sad and kind of hopeful? And then- Then the Phoenix fell back and lay still. I think it died. The creature's death seemed only to inspire Shinra who tried even harder to get inside.

And then the egg hatched.

And then I remembered how Phoenix's work! (I know - you must be rolling your eyes at this)

A wave of fire came out from the egg and rushed down towards the army. And- And they were just gone. I barely had time to move, but the wave broke meters away from me. And when it receded – no trace of anyone or anything from Shinra remained. And up on the tower, a smaller Phoenix emerged from the egg and settled itself on top of the Mako reactor.

And then... nothing. Hours passed. The airship left – and Aeris wandered back in a Shinra infantry uniform and she was smiling. "They didn't need me, but I'm glad I went."

"But you... knew? How did you know?" She just smiled at that and looked further East. Towards Midgar.

"Shinra are distracted and unfocused. If I- If we act now. We can stop them." She asked me to keep on going to Midgar with her.

...and I will. I know this must seem terrible of me, but I want to see this through to the end. Shinra have caused so much damage, are hurting the Planet every-day. If they can be stopped, if they can stop polluting then the future would be so much brighter. So. I agreed – with the caveat we stop here at Kalm and I was able to write to you. I will mail you from Midgar if I can.

Going to get provisions together for the trek – can't believe I've had to leave my boat behind at last. Mailing this now.

Yours, fighting for the future and love you and I can't say sorry enough.

Undyne


	6. The End of the World

Dear Alphys,

I pray with all my heart that this letter reaches you. I should be there with you. I could still make it back – maybe. If they're right about how much time we have left. But if I did- Then I don't know what happens here. But you are with your family and I want to be with you and mine.

I'm writing this at the edge of Sector Five in Midgar. There's a caravan headed towards the East and towards the Mythril Mines. Some people are considering holing up there until the end. The leaders have said they'll take letters and pass them on if they can. So there's a chance you'll read this one day and know that I was thinking of you right up until the end.

That canon firing- I thought Aeris would be insistent we stop it. But she seemed torn. And not just because of the odds (two of us, and too many infantry and SOLDIERs. Too much time and distance and Mako reactors are like fortresses)! I thought she would have wanted it stopped – and when I asked how we could, it strengthened my supposition about Aeris having something to do with Avalanche. She said: "Explosives worked before"

And yeah – Avalanche blew up two reactors not that long ago. Not that Aeris knew where to get explosives (so I'm confused again). Even if we had found them, we come back to the fortress comment. Still; Aeris was different in Midgar. She cut off her braid and dyed her hair blonde. For the first time I saw her without much of a plan. We needed explosives, we had no idea where to get them-

The first moment we knew something was wrong was when the city went dark. And the windows shattered and it was like a roll of thunder and the plates shook and for a horrible moment I thought it was going to fall! And then the top of the Shinra tower exploded. That took some time to find out about the Weapon returning fire.

But what few people seem to know about is the attempted second shot – the lights dimmed again- And nothing. Some people swear Avalanche were in the city too (and Aeris is still steering clear of them for some reason?) and had something to do with stopping that but I can't say.

The city was chaotic after that. Power worked – just about. But Shinra were gone. The fires in the tower eventually burnt themselves out, but blazed on well into the night. There were rumours that Rufus Shinra was up there and never made it back down. If nothing else he never spoke in public again. The city seemed near leaderless until Tuesti's address some days later. The streets were in panic. Armed thugs guarded anywhere with food or shelter on the Upper plate.

Aeris insisted we could not stay and guided me down to the slums. Some others from the Upper plate followed, trusting the plates to keep them safe, but most clung to their lives above. And-

My letters are so full of strange and unusual things Aeris has said or done. So quite why I should be surprised by her time in Midgar, I don't know but- So, for one thing, she was staring North again but kept murmuring something. I think it was "Not enough time."

For another was her house. Aeris used to live in Midgar – up until somewhat recently. That is not that strange (though still no idea how she got to Gongaga), but her house is. Alyphys, it's like something out of a fairy-story! There's this spot in Sector Five. Back behind two apartment blocks is this... grotto maybe? There's a rocky outcrop that Sector Five jams up against and Midgar is formed around. And beside that is a place where the sun reaches the ground. I know! It sounds impossible, but I saw it.

There's gardens and flowers there and this quaint cottage beside a river that looks so out of place in the city. And as soon as Aeris walked up to the door I could only think "Of course. Of course she of all people would live here." In the mornings you can almost believe you're not in Midgar. Almost.

Inside; bit of a mess. Someone cleared out in a hurry. With all the crayon drawings and abandoned toys, it seems like a young child was here. Aeris's sister? Daughter? Not impossible for either, but then- Who was here with the child – if I am right about that? The rest of the house doesn't make a lot of sense. She told me to make myself at home. Never easy to do in a house that is clearly someone else's!

There were three rooms upstairs; one locked, one was Aeris's and the other spare. See how I can't make sense of that? Like, the spare room (which became mine) is a spare room. Barely furnished but has a comfortable bed. The locked room I would guess belonged to whoever was here looking after the child. And so the child... Stayed in Aeris's room? Why?

Aeris Gainsborough; everything she says and does seems to raise more questions. She's going to tell me the truth at some point and I just know I'm not going to believe her.

Alphys; we did nothing once we got to the house. Well. Not nothing, but- I had trusted in Aeris, thought there was a plan or a goal. But we did nothing. We wasted days on mundane activities; Aeris tending to her garden, constantly agitated, finding errands and chores to do. I helped, I watched the news. I helped ferry home the food as prices rose and supplies were cut off. I trusted her to have a plan. She says she does- But how can she?

I need to finish up; the caravan is moving out soon. I hope I can just finish...

This morning Aeris asked me to get people out of the slums – get them moving towards Kalm before the end. I am stealing precious minutes of this role to write this. Aeris is not with me; she said "I have something I need to do" and walked into a broken down church hours ago. I thought nothing of the old ways survived here, but once again Aeris seems to come hand in hand with these oddities and surprises. The strange and unusual surrounds her; it's not impossible she's praying for a miracle. And if anyone could succeed at that, it would be her.

And I've tried to do what she asked all day. Cajoled and pleaded and threatened. Some people are now making their way towards Kalm. Others plan on joining the caravan to the mines. But too many are taking Acting Shinra Head Tuesti's words to heart: that they should just hide in the slums. It all feels so futile and- And I could join the caravan. Hole up and maybe- Turn my back on all the people here.

I want to be selfish, but I'm not sure I could ever live with myself if I run now. I need to try as much as I can.

I hope this letter finds you. But in another sense, I hope it doesn't. I hope you never see this letter, and the next one I send you is telling you I'm on my way back. That everything is fine. That Meteor is no longer a threat. Or perhaps I might be able to tell you that in person. But if this my last message to you:

I love you.

Yours

Undyne


	7. Coming Home (For Real)

Dear Alphys,

I'm heading home soon! It's been too long already, and if I could have let you know I'm okay sooner, I would but things happened. But this time – whatever it was – it feels like it's over. I don't feel obligated to be here like I did. I would love to know what happens next, but I love you more – and I am so anxious to get back. I feel you have to be okay. Things haven't been the easiest here – but then we were right under Meteor when it went. I would hope things were easier over there.

Is the power out there too? Everything shut down here when Meteor vanished. Midgar went utterly dark. And all those people I tried to get to leave left in droves with the power out.

Aeris made it too of course. She was stumbling along the street and for once she looked like she hadn't slept in a month. But she was smiling- even after her legs gave out. I had to help her out of the city and into the wasteland. I asked what she had been doing.

"Praying" she said. Which might explain her difficulty walking after whole days of it but, really? She said her friends would be there soon – and I would get to meet them.

I asked her if that was it now. Everything finally over and nowhere else for us to go?

She said: "It's never over." And she laughed. "Meteor's gone, but the Planet needs new people to care for it. My time is over." And then... I almost want to say you have to trust me she said this, but why at this point? Plus what happened a few weeks later just... Anyway. She said: "I will refrain from going to the Promised Land just yet."

And that is an Ancient thing to be the best of my knowledge. And I would have asked what she meant but that's when the airship arrived. It looked familiar and weird all at the same time. This turned out to be because it's the same one that arrived at Fort Condor before. Only now it's smaller and sleeker and just... different. And inside were Avalanche.

Aeris called out to them and gave her name. Cloud awake and alert stared at Aeris with his mouth open. Tifa just bowled her over into the sand and started sobbing. The rest followed; that Wutai girl is called Yuffie. The man in the cape is called Vincent. The cat with the fiery tail talks and is called Nanaki. The man with a gun for an arm is called Barret. The man with the goggles is called Cid, the mechanical cat on the mechanical moogle is Cait Sith. And they could not believe Aeris was there and she was smiling and hugging Tifa, hugging Cloud.

Later I found out part of why they reacted like that. No one seemed to want to talk about it that much, but Yuffie eventually let it slip. Avalanche thought Aeris was dead – that they had said their goodbyes to her in a strange city past the Sleeping Forest. And here she was, alive and well. Not that Yuffie could explain how she and the others made it through the forest. So many mysteries remain... But it's hard to care now. We're alive! Meteor's gone. Shinra's gone.

And that's the other reason this has taken so long. I waited a bit to pen this to try and ensure it would make it to you. I know letters are better now, so there is a good chance this will make it to you before I get back. And I've been helping rebuild here. So many people have lost everything.

And when I say Shinra's gone, that's mostly true. But Cait Sith turned out to be Tuesti – the guy who took charge in the last few days. Lot of secrets with this bunch. And I'm kinda building to the weirdest.

I told Aeris I would be leaving today two days ago. She asked me to take a trip inside Midgar first. Cloud and Tifa were invited too and about as confused as I was. Getting treacherous inside the city now. Meteor was evaporated but it did a number on the Upper Plates and with less people around the monster population is way up. So you might think that Cloud being a former SOLDIER, and Tifa being dangerous enough to execute (okay, so it turns out Tifa is this amazing martial artist as well) might be there to keep me and Aeris safe. Nope. No monsters came anywhere near us the entire time. Well, not quite:

Aeris took us back to her house. "I want to introduce you to someone." And oh, she did. "My home for fourteen years. My mother's for longer. I'm loathe to leave it here as the city crumbles."

Cloud reckoned we might be able to dismantle it. Aeris said that wouldn't be necessary. And she touched the wall. And- The house woke up. It shuddered and swayed, rising up from the ground. Alphys; I was staying inside a Hell House!

Tifa and Cloud panicked but Aeris waved them to be quiet. Her mother had tamed the creature long ago and it- She had been waiting for Aeris or her mother to return.

The creature did not live up to its name. Calm, and quiet. Respectful. It trailed behind Aeris and she lead it out of Midgar. Over the course of the day, they lead it to Kalm where it nestled just outside the city.

Incredible, impossible but I swear it's true. Not sure how I feel about living inside and around it like that. But Aeris is fine. Cloud and Tifa seem to be adjusting. And that's where I will leave them.

Heading off now – and a race! Who can get back faster; me or the letter?

Yours, and desperate to see you now.

Undyne


	8. Junon Pit-Stop

Dear Alphys,

First off – I am still on my way back! I've stopped by Junon on my way. The winds that got me this far are not feeling anywhere close to as amenable this time around. Slower going in the post-Meteor world.

Junon looks so weird without the canon.

Holing up for the night and I should be in Costa del Sol by Friday.

See you soon!

Love

Undyne


	9. Last Letter?

Dear Alphys,

Last letter I hope. Costa del Sol feels as if the last few months never happened. Still a tourist trap. They've adapted well without Mako, but the big ferries no longer make it to the docks. Makes it nicer on the beach.

So close and itching to get back. I'm setting sail in the morning – and all being well, I will be there in two days' time!

All my love,

Undyne


	10. Invitation

Dear Aeris,

I can't believe it's been three years already! Time has flown. And this is a long delayed letter. Not so much because I had nothing to tell you, but the few letters I have tried came back stamped "Unknown Address, Return to Sender". Took me a while to realise that you and your house are possibly not in that same spot outside Kalm where I last saw it. Even then it took a while to put some odd rumours of travelling shops together with you. But if this letter finds you (and it should – I have a better idea of how and who these should go via! And if you want to know that is you'll have to ask in person. Now *I* can be all mysterious and evasive (or at least try to be)), then I hope you are well and happy.

You likely have peeked at the rest of the envelope. Or if not – go do so now!

So, yes! Alphys and I are getting married and we would love for you to be there. Hope I'm not wide of the mark, but you got the unique wedding invite with a plus two instead of a plus one. I mean, I might have misunderstood, but better safe than sorry. Though now I'm wondering if it should be a plus three? Does the house count too?

(Alphys wants to know if she has a name)

...maybe I should have opened with me and Alphys are fine. She's fine – better than fine, she's still amazing. I was in some amount of trouble for a time, but that's passed and things are so much better now. So we're getting ready for the wedding and there's so much to do. And I can sail properly now. I got to do it with you too, but now I can sail wherever I want without worries.

No one here quite believes my story though. No one's convinced I could get my boat so far North or South. They really don't believe the time-frame either. But it happened. And you gave me that bag of Materia. That made a number of questions irrelevant (aside from the still recurring joke that I robbed somewhere and hid away until the fuss died down. I leave it up to you if you want to run with that theory!).

I kind of don't want to say too much – it'd be so much better to say everything else in person.

So. Hope to see you soon!

Your Friend,

Undyne.


	11. RSVP

Dear Undyne,

Congratulations! I look forward to finally meeting Alphys after so long and after hearing so much about her. Please tell her that the house's name is "A'Tuin" and she is the only person to date who has thought to ask. The invite with a plus two did cause some debate. Cloud and Tifa would of course be the immediate choice, but since you brought her up, maybe it should be me, Tifa and A'Tuin (Sorry Cloud!)...

We will definitely be there in some capacity!

Congratulations again, and looking forward to catching up!

Your friend,

Aeris

PS. After some thought, I think A'Tuin might be crashing your wedding regardless. She will probably sit out the ceremony, but might be close by for the meal. Just to warn you, she has some unique dietary requirements (odd socks, loose change, TV remotes (better still are battery compartment covers for TV remotes), appliance instruction manuals and pens)!


End file.
